I have written “Leading Lean” for ASSEMBLY for over 5 years. This marks my 55th and final contribution. I still have plenty to say, but it’s time for me to move on from this particular role.

When eliminating waste from your assembly line, don’t overlook waste that may be designed into your product from the start.

Every corporation wants to be innovative. But, being innovative is not a behavior. It’s not something on your to-do list between picking up dry cleaning and writing performance reviews. Innovation is the by-product of plans, processes, people and behaviors.

Ever have the strange feeling that something big is wrong, but you don’t know what it is? Managing by control points is the only cure.

The CEO must be the champion and leader of a lean transformation, but the board of directors can have a major impact, too.

Lean applies to every function within a business. You cannot succeed on your lean journey without engaging the sales organization at some point.

While A3 reports should follow a basic template, the exact format and wording are flexible,to meet unique requirements. The type of information contained in an A3 often depends upon the purpose of the report and the audience. Here are some tips on what you should include.

Manufacturers have no trouble hanging onto key employees these days, since job opportunities are scarce. But, that hasn’t reduced the need to find new ways to engage people. No matter what type of economic opportunities a company can provide, engagement still plays an important role in employee retention.

The A3 process is a simple way of getting a problem, an analysis, a corrective action or an action plan written down on a single sheet of large paper, often with the use of graphics. Many manufacturers use it as a powerful lean management tool.

A great lean thinker has a lens for value.